Allie Mae Hargrove Austin was affectionately known by her family and friends as "Tete".

Summers at Tete and Daddy Bob's house were filled with homemade peach ice cream, homemade pineapple sherbet, and watermelon. And one summer, there was a snake. I walked up on a coiled rattlesnake and let out a blood curdling scream. Everyone in the house came running. Tete was armed with her grubbing hoe and chopped the snake's head off. She was my hero. Tete and her dog Audie were the snake hunters.

Spending the night with Tete was a great adventure. One time we made a post office from the boxes from her new washer and dryer. The next time we visited, we were surprised that she had saved the post office and her junk mail for us to play with.

My grandmother was an avid crocheter. Her favorite project was baby blankets for all the new babies. She always had a spare one, "just in case" she got a shower invitation she wasn't expecting. She taught me how to crochet and every time I work on a project, I remember her.

One of the saddest day of my life was when my grandmother was diagnosed with rectal cancer. When she came to Charleston for her treatments, she would stop by my sorority house at the College of Charleston with a care package for me - beanie weenies, pot pies, and a little spending money. I got engaged and my mom was making my wedding gown. Tete took a turn for the worse and was hospitalized. Mama took my pre-wedding pictures of me in my wedding dress to the hospital so Tete could see them. She was so happy for me. Unfortunately, she didn't get to attend my wedding. She died on a Sunday morning, the day of my bridal shower.

She and her first husband, Timothy Dukes "Tim" Ackerman, were the parents of Claudia Elizabeth "Betty" Ackerman Dixon and Barbara Mae Ackerman Crump.

At the time of her death she had 4 grandchildren, Dolly Wescoat, Bonnie Vernon Seiter, Janet Crump (me) and Bobby Crump and 3 great-grandchildren, Lori and Timmy Wescoat and Minette Seiter.

Side Note:There was always some confusion about my grandmother's name, Allie Mae. In doing my family genealogy research, I have found that in her early years the family referred to her as "Alice Mary".